via press release:

ABC is TV’s No. 1 Network on Thursday in Adults 18-49, Leading its

Regular Competition on the Night for 7 Consecutive Weeks

Freshman “FlashForward” Takes 2nd to Slot-Veteran “Survivor” in Adults 18-49

Dominating the 9pm Hour in Adults 18-49, “Grey’s Anatomy” Qualifies

As Thursday’s No. 1 TV Series in Adults 18-49 for the 7th Week Running

The No. 1 TV Series in the 10pm Hour for the 6th Thursday in a Row in Young

Adults, “Private Practice” Improves the Hour for ABC by 21% Year to Year

Thursday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC registered as Thursday’s the No. 1 network among Adults 18-49 (3.7/10) on the second Thursday of the November Sweep, beating CBS by 6% (3.5/9), NBC by 54% (2.4/7) and Fox by 76% (2.1/6).  ABC has finished No. 1 against its regular competition on the night for 7 consecutive weeks this season.

“FlashForward” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

ABC freshman “FlashForward” took second to CBS’ time-slot veteran “Survivor: Samoa” in the 8 o’clock hour among Adults 18-49 (2.6/7), leading Fox’s “Bones” (2.5/7) and NBC’s comedies (“Community”/”Parks and Recreation” = 2.2/6).

• The top gainer overall for any new series this season in DVR playback, “FlashForward” surges over the first-reported numbers by 1.9 million viewers and by 8-tenths of an Adult 18-49 rating point (+19%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.

“Grey’s Anatomy” (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” (5.0/13) qualified as Thursday’s No. 1 series telecast in Adults 18-49 for the 7th consecutive week.  Topping the 9 o’clock hour by wide margins, “Grey’s” defeated CBS’ “CSI” by 47% (3.4/9), NBC’s comedy combo “The Office”/”30 Rock” by 47% (3.4/9) and Fox’s “Fringe” by 194% (1.7/4).  “Grey’s” was also once again the night’s top-rated show in Adults 18-34 (4.8/13).

• TV’s most-popular show in DVR playback, “Grey’s  Anatomy” jumps over the first-reported numbers by  3.0 million viewers and by an additional 1.5 Adult 18-49 rating points (+20%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.

“Private Practice” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

“Private Practice” stood as the No. 1 series in the 10 o’clock hour for the 6th week running among Adults 18-34 (3.4/10) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/10).

• Versus the year-ago night (11/6/08), “Private Practice” improved ABC’s delivery in the 10 o’clock hour by 21% in Adults 18-49 (3.5/10 vs. 2.9/8 – original “Life on Mars”).

• Like its lead-in, “Private Practice” sees impressive DVR gains from the first-reported numbers, shooting up by 1.8 million viewers and by 1.0 Adult 18-49 rating points (+20%) from the Live + Same Day Numbers to the Live + 7 Day DVR finals.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 33% currently, from 28% at the same point in 2008. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Fast Affiliate, Live + Same Day Ratings), 11/5/09.